Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) Rating Lowered to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ellington Financial in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ellington Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.56.

Ellington Financial Stock Down 1.3%

Ellington Financial stock opened at $12.04 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.02, a quick ratio of 50.60 and a current ratio of 47.25. Ellington Financial has a fifty-two week low of $11.12 and a fifty-two week high of $14.12. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $13.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $13.42. The company has a market cap of $1.50 billion, a PE ratio of 9.79 and a beta of 0.95.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $96.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $132.07 million. Ellington Financial had a return on equity of 14.62% and a net margin of 53.10%. Equities analysts anticipate that Ellington Financial will post 1.38 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ellington Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EFC. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 3.7% in the third quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 22,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $292,000 after buying an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in Ellington Financial by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 15,170 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $197,000 after acquiring an additional 888 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank raised its holdings in Ellington Financial by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 26,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $347,000 after acquiring an additional 897 shares during the last quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC raised its holdings in Ellington Financial by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC now owns 13,664 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $186,000 after acquiring an additional 1,002 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MGO One Seven LLC lifted its stake in Ellington Financial by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 18,147 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,010 shares in the last quarter. 55.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ellington Financial

Ellington Financial, Inc (NYSE: EFC) is a mortgage real estate investment trust (REIT) that focuses on generating attractive risk-adjusted returns through investments in residential and commercial mortgage-related assets. Established in 2013, the company is externally managed by Ellington Financial Management, L.P., a subsidiary of Ellington Management Group, an alternative asset management firm. EFC’s core strategy centers on actively acquiring and managing agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (MBS), mortgage servicing rights, residential whole loans, and other structured finance instruments, including asset-backed securities and commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS).

The company employs leverage and structured financing tools—such as repurchase agreements and secured credit facilities—to enhance portfolio yield while maintaining focus on risk mitigation.